


Drunk in Love

by kaeorin



Series: Loki's Lullabies [146]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Alcohol, Avenger Loki (Marvel), Avenger Reader (Marvel), Avengers Tower, Comfort, Dorks in Love, Drinking, F/M, Fluff, Love, M/M, POV Loki (Marvel), Party, Stark Tower
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-19
Updated: 2020-08-19
Packaged: 2021-03-05 23:35:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,593
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25983730
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kaeorin/pseuds/kaeorin
Summary: Loki keeps an eye on you at one of Stark’s parties, and he can’t help but wonder at you.
Relationships: Loki (Marvel)/Reader
Series: Loki's Lullabies [146]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1678240
Comments: 12
Kudos: 170





	Drunk in Love

**Author's Note:**

> **Be aware: There is alcohol consumption in this fic!** It's not binge drinking or self-medicating but the reader does get tipsy/drunk and Loki kind of just watches them fondly. If this fic sounds like it might not be for you, you might consider going back to [A Light in the Heart](https://archiveofourown.org/works/24599206)? It's still one of my favorites in this whole series.

It wasn’t often that you allowed yourself to drink so much. In a way—in a quiet, secret sort of way—Loki kind of loved it. No one else could ever know that, of course, especially not you, but he couldn’t keep himself from grinning as he watched you. You were a precious sort of drunk: warm and friendly and very clingy. You were dancing with Wanda, completely lost in one another and yet still somehow giggling at each other as you moved. You weren’t terribly graceful tonight, but he couldn’t stop watching you nonetheless. You spent plenty of time being graceful and composed and lovely; tonight he was happy to watch you cut loose, as it were.

He was only here because of you. Before you, he’d never cared for any of Stark’s parties, regardless of the size. Admittedly, even now there were plenty of events where the two of you hid yourselves away in your room, or his, enjoying each other’s presence instead of submitting to the constant press of bodies that inevitably flooded Stark’s parties. Sometimes you could convince him, with your big doe eyes and your pouty lips, to put in an appearance with you, provided you assured him that you could duck out again after less than an hour. He had yet to tell you that he didn’t _really_ mind showing up with you on his arm. Perhaps he should have come clean to you, except you always made the most solemn vows to repay him dearly for his sacrifices at the end of the night, and maybe he wasn’t entirely willing to give that up.

Tonight, the both of you had stuck around through the whole party. It was relatively low-stakes: there were fewer journalists than there usually were. It almost felt intimate. He’d spent the night with you on the dance floor, talking to you in a quiet voice, a private voice, and relishing the way you grinned at and clung to him.

He loved you more than he could say. You had come out of nowhere and made your way into his heart and now he couldn’t even stand to think about being without you. You’d kept things quiet for a long time—an embarrassingly long time, now that he thought about it. He knew it wasn’t easy for you. He knew it hurt you, sometimes, to watch Wanda and Vision allowed to be so open and carefree while he did his best to keep things under wraps. But you only seldom said anything about it. You knew what he needed. You knew that it wasn’t about you or his love for you or really anything except the mess inside him. So you did your best to keep the pain out of your eyes and he did his best to shower you with affection in private.

But when things finally came out, it was so much easier than he thought it could be. If nothing else, he’d expected Thor to give him a hard time. He knew he’d deserve it. All the crowing he’d done about the scientist, all the ridicule that he’d offered his brother: turnabout was fair play, and so he’d braced himself for Thor’s harsh words when he finally let it slip. But his brother had only beamed and thrown his arm around Loki’s shoulders and congratulated him for finally seeing the light.

Tonight, Thor caught his eyes across the room and lifted his flask in a sort of long-distance ‘cheers’. Loki nodded in response. He still didn’t have the _best_ time being around the others without you nearby to act as a buffer, but he wasn’t about to bind you to his side. You deserved better than that. And he knew that you’d always come back to him on your own.

It was the end of the night. Most of the guests had already gone home, so you were more or less surrounded by your teammates. Your friends. At larger parties, you tended to stick to drinking water and soda. You didn’t like the risk of losing control surrounded by strangers. Loki tried to remind you that he was always there, that he’d look after you and protect you even in a ballroom filled with nothing but the enemy, but you always just smiled softly at him and sipped your water. But tonight, it was clear that you felt safe enough to indulge in the various cocktails that Wilson and Romanoff were plying you with. 

He rather liked being able to watch you dip further and further into a lovely inebriation. First, your eyes would grow bright and your body warmer than usual, like there was a fire burning beneath your skin. He’d cupped your cheeks in his hands earlier tonight to try to cool you a bit, and you’d responded with the sweetest breathy moan. As the night wore on, you became a little chattier. You were so excited, so enthusiastic about...everything. You still stuck more or less right beside him, and there had been a point tonight where you were sitting knee-to-knee with him, eyes fixed intently on his as you chirped about how beautiful everybody looked tonight. He’d taken a swig of Asgardian mead here and there, but mostly kept his wits about him so he could keep an eye on you. He kept his promises, after all.

When Wanda came to whisk you onto the dance floor, you’d looked back at him first, studying his face with eyes that were a little too serious. It made him smile. Even when you weren’t entirely There, you were still so concerned with him. He’d risen from his seat only so he could move closer to you and give you a fond kiss before assuring you that he _wanted_ you to go and enjoy yourself.

Perhaps he took a bit too much pleasure in watching you from afar. Maybe it was a little strange, or even inappropriate, for him to lurk in the corners and watch you with a hungry gaze. It reminded him of the way things had been Before. Before you worked up the courage to approach him, he’d watched you a lot. Too much. There was a light in you, a warmth, and it had called out to his bitter loneliness. It soothed him. He’d struggled with that fact for a long time. Did he deserve to find any peace in someone like you? Could he possibly be the kind of person who could ever receive one of your brilliant, happy smiles and deserve it? Everything in his history had told him No, but you kept smiling at him anyway.

Vision appeared beside the two of you and bowed slightly before reaching out to take Wanda’s hand. She laughed and threw her arms around you and kissed your cheek before allowing him to lead her away. He watched you make your way to the bar and he narrowed his eyes in trepidation until the barkeep handed you a glass of water. 

Lovely thing.

You turned away, but then apparently had another thought and turned back to order something else. Another glass of water. Then you headed directly towards where Loki now stood. He had not been hidden so well after all. You weren’t drunk enough to be stumbling, but there was something in your gait that made him long to put his arm around you to steady you. Still, you made it safely back to his side and held out one of the glasses to him.

“You’re _really_ pretty tonight,” you said, eyes wide and mostly clear as you gazed up at him. He smiled despite himself and reached to nudge your glass in hopes of encouraging you to take a sip. 

“Thank you, dear heart. _You_ know that you’re really pretty every night.” Your responding smile was slow, but earnest. It made his chest feel tight. Norns, how he’d like to take you here and now. He took a deep sip of water. He was, of course, not nearly altered enough to be at risk of losing control of himself, but if you knew how he hungered for you, surely you would stammer and try to hide yourself away.

But then again...maybe something like Knowing glinted in your eyes as you continued to study his face. You stepped a little closer to him and drained the rest of your glass so you could put it down and reach out to press your hand to his chest. If he’d known how lovely you felt, would he have deprived himself of you for so long? Surely not. You smiled a rather catlike smile at him and stroked his chest through his shirt.

“You, uh… Do you wanna get out of here?” You made a valiant attempt at winking at him, and he just barely managed to keep from laughing aloud. Darling, precious thing. If the past was any indication, he knew that, when he led you back to his quarters, you were likely to fall asleep in his bed before he got the chance to help you out of his dress, let alone to indulge his desires with you, but he treasured you all the same. He finished his drink as well, and put it down beside your empty glass.

“Absolutely. Shall I lead you home?” He offered your his arm, and savored the warmth that flooded through him when you took it without hesitation. You gazed up at him almost solemnly, and he couldn’t help but lean in for a kiss.

“I’ll follow you anywhere.”


End file.
